Note: The comments and
questions on this page came from people who visited this website. Please feel free to send
your comments and questions to Professor Brenner (brenner@udayton.edu).
She will respond privately, and may ask permission to post your message on
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posted to the site indicate which of us replied: The initials SWB mean
Professor Brenner wrote the response; the initials LES mean Professor Shaw
wrote the response. We are also putting the year down, to indicate when the
response was posted. If no initials appear, Professor Brenner wrote the
response.

Can a grand jury be asked to indict again, if it fails
to do so?

Does a student have to serve on a grand jury, give how
much time it takes?

I was surprised that one of the FAQ's did not include my question: If the
grand jury fails to indict once, can't the prosecution go back to the grand
jury again on the same case, perhaps with more evidence?

Also, I have heard that it is almost impossible to refuse service on a
grand jury, but are there a list of exceptions, such as someone being in
college full-time? With such a lengthy service, how could a student possibly
serve?

Response:

If a grand jury fails to indict, the prosecution can go back to the same
grand jury or to another and seek an indictment . . . absent some rule
to the contrary. This is permissible in the federal system, and is also
permissible in at least some states. If you are talking about a state
grand jury, you'd have to check to be
sure there is no statute to the contrary.

It is very difficult, especially in the federal system, to be excused,
though even the federal system does have categories of people who are
automatically excused . . . and one can always try to convince a judge
that he or she should be excused. The same tends to be true in the
states. If you click on the Federal or State Grand Jury Information
button at the top of this page, you'll find information on this.